Manufacturer Winaico
Array Rating 5.28kW
PV Technology poly-Si
Array Structure Fixed: Ground Mount
Installed 2012

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Current Output

Polycrystalline silicon array, fixed ground-mount.

The silicon crystals that form polycrystalline panels are manufactured through a different process to monocrystalline technologies. The efficiency of crystalline panels continues to increase, as the comparison of recent-generation polycrystalline panels to earlier models shows.

These WINAICO panels offer a positive tolerance of +5% on the rated output. This means the panel may produce slightly more than the rated 240 Watts under test conditions, but not less. The variation in panel output is important because when panels are connected in series their output is limited to the output of the lowest connected panel.

WINAICO panels have also been made with materials that reduce the amount of leakage current – small currents that flow from the photovoltaic cell through the mounting materials – that can reduce the panel’s output over its lifetime.

This array is installed on ground mounted concrete ballasted Schletter array frame.

The above technology description has been supplied by the manufacturer. The Desert Knowledge Australia Solar Centre is pleased to provide a platform for information sharing while not endorsing specific claims made about technologies installed at the site.

Array Rating 5.28kW
Panel Rating 240W
Number Of Panels 22
Panel Type WSP-240P6
Array Area 36.5 m²
Type Of Tracker N/A
Inverter Size / Type 6 kW, Fronius Primo replaced 6kW, SMA SMC 6000A on 29/5/22
Installation Completed Fri, 26 Oct 2012
Array Tilt/Azimuth Tilt = 20, Azi = 0 (Solar North)

Notes on the Data

  1. Inverters replaced

    Failed inverters on sites 8,32,33 and 34 have been replaced with Fronius Primo 6kW inverters. These systems are now generating normally again.


    Wed, 4 May 2022

  2. Failed Inverters

    In addition to the failed inverter on site 33, additional inverter issues have been identified at the following sites.

    • Site 32, complete failure.
    • Site 34, intermittent issue.
    • Site 12, Intermittent issue, tends to be in the middle of the day.

    Remediation work is underway for each array.


    Mon, 14 Feb 2022

  3. Metering failure

    Circuit breaker supplying the metering equipment for sites 23-38 tripped off on Aug 19th and was discovered and turned back on on Aug 23rd. This resulted in a lack of generation data for these sites during this time but did not stop the sites from physically generating.


    Thu, 19 Aug 2021

  4. Site 34 Winaico Outage

    The Winaico PV Array at Site 34 went off line on 2nd June 2021 due to a line AC line fault. This was rectified on the 15th June 2021.


    Tue, 15 Jun 2021

  5. Site 34 Winaico Outage

    The Site 34 PV Array (Winaico) was offline from the 9th March until the 26th March. The cause was a tripping AC circuit breakers. These were reset and the array is now functioning normally.


    Fri, 26 Mar 2021

  6. System Disconnection for Cabling Works

    All arrays at the Solar Centre were disconnected from approximately 2.00pm to 3.00pm on Monday, 9 July 2018 in preparation for the cable between the main switchboard and distribution board being upgraded. Array sites #23-38 remained disconnected while the main feeder cable to these sites was replaced in subsequent days, but all systems were re-connected by early afternoon on Thursday, 12 July 2018.


    Mon, 9 Jul 2018

  7. System Outage at Australia Day Long Weekend

    A breaker tripped at around 12.30pm on Friday, 26 January, likely due to high generation levels reached at this peak time on this high irradiance day. Connection was restored after the Australia Day long weekend at around 11.30am on Monday, 29 January but shortly tripped again.

    UPDATE 26-02-2018. The cause of this reoccurring issue has been identified and will be rectified. The solution requires the upgrading of a key distribution cable. This should be completed in the coming months.


    Fri, 26 Jan 2018

  8. Connection Restored After Christmas/NY Period

    Arrays have been re-connected following the outage that disconnected multiple sites from Christmas day 2017. The outage is believed to have been triggered by the tripping of two circuit breakers in separate distribution boards, making the diagnosis initially elusive. The ability of the common circuit shared by these arrays to keep abreast with increasingly high current demands as new arrays are installed and generation conditions are high is presently being addressed. For the same reason, intermittent outages persisted in the summer of early 2018.


    Fri, 19 Jan 2018

  9. System Outage at Christmas/NY Period

    A system outage was caused by a circuit breaker trip at approximately 2pm on a high generation day shortly after installation of a new array at the DKA Solar Centre. The outage commenced on 25 December continuing into the new year and is being addressed.


    Mon, 25 Dec 2017

  10. System Outage for New Array Connection

    Sites 23 through to 37 experienced an outage today from 11:10 to 11:50. The outage was due to the local distribution board being temporarily being taken offline to allow for the connection of a new PV system.  


    Wed, 20 Dec 2017

  11. Monitoring Interruption for UPS Battery Replacement

    The disconnection and re-connection of the solar arrays and weather station equipment while a new site connection was being established prompted the already flattening UPS batteries which power the site’s energy meters to fail and require immediate replacement. Data recording was affected from approximately 2.30pm ACST, Monday 10 July to 4.00pm, Wednesday 12 July.

    Affects weather data for DKASC, Alice Springs


    Wed, 12 Jul 2017

  12. Partial System Outage

    One of the major switchboards at the DKASC lost power yesterday 01/12/2016 at ~11:00 am. This isolated and shutdown array sites 23 through to 37 inclusive. The switchboard was re-energised at ~16:30 today (02/12/2016) and is again operating normally. Data for this period for these sites is lost.


    Fri, 2 Dec 2016

  13. Site 34: Temporary Shutdown

    Site 34 was temporarily shutdown on the 11th May 2016 from ~ 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. This was to de-energize the underground cable feeding the site to allow for safe trenching and augering work on neighbouring sites.


    Wed, 11 May 2016

  14. System Outage - Sites 4, 5, 17, 20, 22, 34 and 35

    On the 5th June 2015, A Friday before a long weekend, seven individual PV systems at the DKASC were switched off by unknown persons and for unknown reasons. The outage was not noted until the following Tuesday when O&M staff returned to work and found the main circuit breakers for sites 4, 5, 17, 20, 22, 34 & 35. turned off. These systems were all turned back on again on the 9th March when the problem was detected.


    Wed, 10 Jun 2015

  15. Site 34: System Fault

    In late June 2013 an issue was detected with Site 34 the Winaico system. For much of the month of June the Winaico system inverter was shutting itself on and off intermittently. After much investigation the problem was sourced to a loose neutral wire in one the DKASC switchboards which was causing an intermittent floating neutral and a subsequent voltage rise on the phase that the Winaico system is connected to. Other systems at the DKASC were also effected by this probelm but to a much lesser extent. These included all sites 23-39. The problem is now resolved and all data from 3rd July 2013 can be considered accurate. The system data for the Winaico system for June 2013 is not representative of the true performance of the Winaico system.


    Wed, 3 Jul 2013



> Answer to Spotlight Question

Onsite at the DKA Solar Centre in Alice Springs are a series of quiz-like Spotlight Questions at each array. Visit the centre and scan the QR code at each sign to test your knowledge – and check your answer here!

Q: Which parts of the system should you check when you trouble-shoot a performance problem? What can you look out for?

A: Depending on how the performance problem was first detected and the suspected cause, a number of physical, visual and online investigations can be made to understand the issue. Remote monitoring systems can record historical characteristics such as power, voltage and frequency outputs (these remote portals may be linked to the inverter or installed as an independent data logger). Qualified personnel may also perform physical/electrical inspections such as checking for degraded hardware, corrosion, water ingress or loose connections, at both the array and the switchboard level. Visual inspections may consider the module surface, array structure and surrounding area including nearby trees and shade-inducing structures, while thermographic cameras can be used to detect hot spots or anomalous temperatures on the module surface or other parts. Inverter settings, grid conditions, recent weather patterns and other contextual factors may also be considered to form a holistic picture of the PV array's circumstances.